Where We Begin
by Pink Reflections
Summary: When they start their 7th year no one ever expected James Potter to come back a new person...Especially not Lily Evans. Everyone else can see it, but will she see the new James? Or just the person he used to be?
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter 1: Let's be friends**_

"Well done Miss. Evans. Extraordinary job on this potion. Look here class, you too Black. The steam is a creamy magenta colour... You see?" Horace Slughorn marvelled at the work of Lily Evans.

He had watched her grow for the past 6 years from a scared young muggle born witch, to the delightfully beautiful 17 year old woman before him. She had long auburn hair and a creamy white skin, even in September there was no tan in sight. She had the most beautiful face he had ever seen in a woman so frail, with emerald green eyes and dusty pink cheeks. He had watched her extraordinary talents as a witch develop in every aspect. He knew for a fact that she had received 9 O's on her O.W.L examinations. He also knew that she tried twice as hard as most students, because she had to prove herself as a muggle born witch in Hogwarts. He had chosen her as one of his great students he handpicked to be in his inner circle.

He then moved to the seat beside her, that was also occupied by a Gryffindor. James Potter was from a very respectable pureblood family. His father was the head of the Auror department and his mother was a stay at home mom. They were strongly against the rising power that was Voldemort. He shuddered at his thought. He had tried for three years to forget the memories of that particular man, but no mater how hard he tried the memories of his days at Hogwarts never faded away. James Potter on the other hand held certain similarities towards Tom Riddle. They were both devastatingly handsome, and regarded so by the whole school. They both held this certain type of power that was talismanic over people. They were both very popular and athletic and held much influence over the rest of the population. However where they differed greatly was that James Potter was strongly against anything and everything Voldemort represented. He was a strong fighter against the evil that Voldemort represented. James Potter, before this year, was a slacker. As much potential as he held, he never seemed to use it. He was quite often wrapped up in the games and tricks his crew called the Marauders put out. But now, when he realised the threat of the evil power towards him and his loved ones he had gotten his act together. And it was a very easy turn around to see. Where his once arrogant ways used to reside, was now replaced by thoughtfulness and compassion. Where he used to be nothing but trouble, he now had a certain regard towards the rules. And where he used to slave after Lily Evans with all he was worth, he had now given her the space she needed.

"Well done Mr. Potter. Your work has taken a turn around this year. I dare say you are at Lily Evans standards" He said to James with a wink. He knew all about how James hoped his reformed ways would impress Lily. Slughorn was positive that the feelings James had for Lily were much more strong than he let on. He remembered what it was like to feel like that for a young lady, and hoped that they could make it in a way that his love could not.

"Mr. Black, dismal performance as usual" the professor said moving on quickly. He didn't like to waste his thoughts on this rogue boy. This boy was the first of the Black family not to have been in his own house, Slytherin. Although he missed the opportunity to have the brothers Black Regulus and Sirius, he was secretly happy Sirius was placed in Gryffindor. He had found true loyalty and love of friendship there. Sirius was a heart-throb for all the girls of Hog warts and it didn't take a genius to see It. His hair was black as the night and fell into his face with a certain grace. His problem was unlike his very best friend James Potter, he did not seem able to grow up just yet.

After surveying the potions of Spencer McMillan, Lucius Malfoy, Severus Snape, Tina Monroe and Frank Longbottom he was quite content and released the class for supper.

"Hear that Lils?… James' work was Lily Evans standards worthy" Sirius joked with a fake gasp. The students started to head towards the Great Hall for their long awaited supper. Lily and James were starving because over their lunch they had Head boy and girl duties to take care of for Dumbledore, and totally missed any opportunity to eat lunch.

"I think you'll find you don't want to call me Lils Black… I may be forced to use Lily Evans standards Book smashing on your dashingly handsome head." Lily said rolling her eyes.

Sirius looked astonished, "So my head is devilishly handsome then?"

Lily looked irritated, "That's not what I said."

Sirius gazed at her, "Bet you think James' head is more devilishly handsome."

Lily gave him a look that would have shot daggers at him if it could have and stormed away to talk to Spencer McMillan. They got into a calm conversation about the new DADA teacher who they enjoyed thoroughly. His name was Professor. Pegthoe. Lily and Spencer got on quite well, but as much as everyone told Lily he was interested in her she was not in him.

"What is your problem Padfoot? Do you have to pester her at every possible moment you can? Let her be." James said downcast.

"Who shoved that long stick up your ass Prongs? Last time I checked you were doing the same thing." Sirius said. He obviously had not noticed so much of a difference as the others, because despite being back for 4 days at Hogwarts, he had spent the entire summer by James' side.

James got mad. He wanted to let things run their own course. He respected Lily and the fact that she wanted nothing to do with him. He still felt for her as much as he ever did, the thing was he now respected that she needed space, time and to see the changes. James felt as though she would never see this until Sirius stopped interfering. "Sirius you know the difference between you and I? You are still a little boy who plays with girls hearts, I on the other hand have decided that with the state of the world now to grow-up. Maybe it's time for you to as well."

Sirius stared at James flabbergasted. He couldn't say a word. Soon they were inside the Great Hall meeting up with their other two comrades Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.

Remus Lupin was tall along with Sirius and Remus. He wasn't a looker like the other two, but it is not to say he didn't have attractiveness. He had eyes of blue and hair of a sandy blonde. He was a calm tempered boy. He was the brains and sense of the Marauders. Most people would not think such a person to be involved with James Potter and Sirius Black. You see Remus may not have been the 'type' but they were the best friends he could ever have asked for. They had stuck by him even when they had found out about his being a werewolf. They even became Illegal anima Gus for his sake and safety. He prized his friends above all else, because they were more than someone like him could have asked for.

Peter Pettigrew was a mouse of a boy. What more could be said than he was short, plump and rather ugly. Most people found it hard to decipher why he would be part of the Marauders, but they took him for who he was. They may have been short with him by times, but they prized him as a valuable part of their group.

Sirius walked over and plunked himself down across from Bella Rhint, his good friend. She was the best friend of Lily Evans and Marlene McKinnon. What connected the two groups was Emma and Sirius' off and on relationship.

Bella Rhint was a rambunctious girl. She was as beautiful as a veela. Long hair of shiny golden blonde, clear complexion with beautiful face and figure. Although one would think she was snobbish and full of herself, even though she tended to outshine her friends sometimes, she was very protective of her friends and would never let any harm come to them. She was for the most part selfless.

Marlene McKinnon was also beautiful, but with shy beauty. She had shoulder length chestnut brown hair and brown eyes with a cute small nose. Her face was covered in freckles from the recent summer sun. She was very shy, much considered the unspoken one, but down under it all she was as exuberant as Bella.

Sirius kissed her forehead as he sat down. Peter, Remus and (reluctantly) James sat down on his sides. When Lily and Marlene came to join Bella they got a surprise. They noted the boys and soon made a conclusion that Sirius and Bella were starting another one of their things. By things, Lily thought, she meant friends with benefits all the time. As much as the two held in common, and as strong as their friendship was, the two couldn't seem to keep their hands off each other. More than once Lily had come back from prefects patrols with Remus, to find an empty common room except for Bella and Sirius kissing heatedly.

Much to Lily's dismay the only place left to sit was across from James. She grudgingly sat down and piled mashed potatoes on her plate.

"I think James is under the impression that I am a player. And that I need to grow up." Sirius stated out of the silence.

Every head of the group turned towards him, whether in shock or curiousness, 'is that right' or agreement. "Well it's not far from the truth is it?" Bella stated braking the silence once more.

"Oh no Bella, don't pin this one me. You're the female version of me, you can't give me all the blame." Sirius said disbelievingly. He had only brought it up as a means of embarrassment to James and Lily. It had certainly taken a different turn.

"Well Sirius, I think James is quite right. We all need to take this time to grow up. Yes, even you and me. This may be the end of fooling around as we know it." Bella said this last part with a bit of sarcasm.

Sirius dismissed this information and resolved to talk to Bella later. "The point I was trying to make is that apparently our James is all grown up. How come I never got that memo?"

"But haven't you realised? He is concentrating in class, he is being very responsible, he is head boy, and he doesn't continually ask out Lily. In fact I don't think he has all year." Marlene said quietly.

Lily responded wittily, "We are sitting right here Marlene. Thanks for the insight."

James had his head slightly bowed. He didn't know why he felt uncomfortable. It was almost worse than being shot down.

Dinner went on in silence as Remus and Lily got to talking about everything, yet nothing at all. Lily liked Remus, he was a good friend. They had become rather close during their two years as Prefects together, and she fully expected him to get the title of Head Boy rather than James. She recalled a time in fourth year when she had a crush on Remus, and James got mad. Mad enough to stop speaking to Remus for days.

After dinner Lily and James left the company of their friends to go to their private common room and dorm. They both found it rather peaceful to have a place o do their homework and thinking in peace and quite.

Upon approaching a portrait of a Peacock, James recited the word "Tea leaves" and they entered their private dorms. The common room was a deep purple with black furniture. It was elegant and peaceful. Leading off the right side of the room was a plaque of gold engraved with the name Lily Evans, residing right beside a mahogany door. On the left side the same could be seen with the name James Potter.

They both settled in a comfortable silence doing their homework. The only thing breaking the dead of night was the ticking of the clock and Lily's heavy breathing.

"What way do you mix after adding the frog's spawn?" James asked Lily over his black rimmed glasses that were falling off his nose.

"Three times to the right and six to the left. Repeat it 4 times." Lily said off-handedly.

"Thanks Lily." James said. Lily looked up at him and smiled a true, genuine smile.

"I can see why they all say you've changed. Maybe we should make a truce, and just be friends. I mean we will have to work very closely together for the next year. Maybe we could be friends. I'd like that." Lily told him.

James' smile could not have been wider. "Yeah Lily, I'd like that a lot."

They sat there in silence finishing their homework enjoying each other's company. When they were done they parted ways into their respective bedrooms, and as they closed the doors the fire in the common room went out slowly.

A/N - Please read and review : ) New chapter on it's way soon.Kayla


	2. Chapter 2: It's all about Maturity

_**Chapter 2: It's all about maturity**_

The others walked into the Gryffindor Tower common room. Marlene and Bella took out their homework and set off on their Ancient Ruins homework. They sat at a table in a corner, as to not be distracted by the brand new first years who usually peered over their shoulders at odd intervals to see what their work was like.

Soon after, they were joined by Remus, Peter and Sirius. Remus and Peter were doing an essay for Divination and Sirius was concentrating on his Potions homework, or trying to at least.

When James had told him to grow up, he just assumed he was receiving the bad end of some rage. But when Bella had said that they must all grow-up, he took that to heart. Him and Bella had a complex relationship. As much as they fooled around she always kept him grounded. She was perfect. She was beautiful and fun, but she had this persona that made him feel guilty when he did something wrong. She made him a better person; kept him in check if you will. Now, to know that they both had to grow up made him feel deflated.

They sat in silence while the common room had a slight buzz. Every once and a while one of them would sigh, or growl and in Marlene's case stick out their tongue when a problem got too tough. It took all of Remus' efforts not to laugh when Marlene did this. So after about 2 hours of silence, and much homework completed later the 5 went over by the fire and sat down.

Remus and Marlene and Peter took the couch and there was only one chair left. Sirius and Bella ran and fought over it. Sirius won by tickling her mercilessly. After about 5 minutes of shameless flirting Bella made Sirius scoot over and she sat in the tiny space left. She was partially sitting on his knees, and was sure he was rather uncomfortable.

They talked for a while about how strange this year was going to be without Lily and James around all the time. They all agreed that the occupants of Gryffindor tower would not miss the early morning fights that were held in the common room and were impossible to sleep through.

After a while the 5 were the only inhabitants left in the common room. Peter decided to go up to bed, closely followed by Remus. Marlene stayed to chat for a few minutes more, but abruptly left when she realised the time. So then there were two.

"If you would kindly get up, I'd like to get some sleep." Bella said, too lazy to be the first to stand.

Sirius, instead of making a move to get up, pulled Bella closer to him and turned her head towards him. He looked into her eyes and then down to her soft pink lips. He looked up again to her eyes and used his thumb to brush away a piece of hair that fell in front. He then leaned forward and brushed his lips gently against hers. Closed his eyes and pulled away slightly. "I've been waiting all summer for an opportunity to do this." he told her huskily.

Bella opened her eyes, that she didn't realise were closed. She let out a long shaky breath. "We can't do this anymore Sirius. As much fun as it is, I need something more. I need to find a boyfriend. I need something real."

Staring her eyes and seeing hurt, he pulled back so their lips were no longer brushing together as they spoke. He gave her room. "Bella."

"No just listen to me. Once I find someone we can't continue this." Bella said softly looking down at her lap.

"That's never stopped us before." Sirius said trying to regain her attention.

"Nothing has ever mattered before Sirius. There was always you at the end of the day when things got rough, and after fooling around with other guys you were always there. I can't do that anymore. We're just going to have to be friends. Do you understand?" Bella said, starting to get up.

Sirius wasn't ready for this conversation to be over. "Bella," he said with all the tenderness he could muster, "I could be that guy. I can't stand not being with you. I can grow up and be the person you want me to be."

Bella looked down at him with teary eyes, "The problem with what you say Is that I don't think you can."

The next day was a Friday. A very dull Friday. The only thing remotely interesting that happened was that Spencer McMillan caught a mysterious 'fever' that made his skin turn blue with purple boils. He was taken out of Transfiguration and rushed to the hospital wing.

Friday Evening came and instead of relaxing with their friends, the seventh year students were seen doing homework instead. The work load was unbearable for those students who had not made much of a effort in the past (cough Sirius cough)

After last nights events the girls retreated to Lily's private dorm. Sirius had made a point of ignoring Bella all day and she had made a point not to be anywhere near him. Although the whole group heard about what happened by word of mouth, they couldn't quite believe the level of maturity that Bella had taken against her ongoing fling with Sirius Black.

"I can't believe it Bella. Just can't believe it." Marlene said taking a bite out of her chocolate frog, "You actually told him that you didn't think he would ever grow up? And that it's over? Like never again will any of us walk in on you two snogging?"

Bella took her head out from under her pillow to look at her two best friends. "I meant what I said. I need a relationship. Something solid and steady. Not just a good snog at the end of the day."

Lily faked a gasp, "You mean.. you don't think? You've actually grown up?"

The other two laughed at Lily's expression. Lily was glad that Bella had done that. She didn't want her friend to spend her last year at Hogwarts the way she had spent the first six. She wanted her best friend to experience something real, ad something that wasn't Sirius Black.

"Yes well, you also made quite a decision last night Lily." Bella pointed out.

Marlene smiled a smug smile, "It's been a long time coming. We have been waiting for this for Merlin knows how long."

Lily had a little smile on her face as well. "Well see, all he had to do was grow up. I am looking forward to having him as a allay rather than an enemy."

Bella snorted a laugh. "This is not just a game Lily, he really wants to be your friend. This morning he came up to me and squeezed the life out of me cause he was so happy. You would have thought that Christmas came early."

Marlene let out a long breath. "Seems seventh year is going to be a year of change. Here's to a year of excitement and torture we are sure to have in store for us.

The boys sat in Gryffindor common room after they had finished their homework. James and Sirius needed not to speak for they just knew how the other felt and thought. No words were passed between the two, but the others knew by their secretive glances that they were having a silent conversation. Remus and Peter knew what had happened, but neither knew what was going on in the heads of their friends.

Sirius suddenly stood up and looked around and when he saw a smirk on James' face he sat down. They continued like that for several minutes until they turned their attentions to their other two friends.

"Glad that's settled. What happened with you two today?" James asked with a smile. He smiled all day.

"Spencer McMillan got what he deserved didn't he? I enjoyed watching him turn blue. When those boils started to explode it was all I could do not to laugh." Peter said as James and Sirius chuckled along with him.

Remus looked at them un-approvingly but did not say a word.

The others noticed he seemed particularly quiet and preoccupied. "So how was your day Mooney?"

"Fine."

"Awfully quiet today." Sirius teased.

"I don't want to talk about it." Remus said startlingly loud.

The other three looked shocked. It wasn't like Remus to get snappy and defensive over anything, especially something he wasn't accused of. "Whoa Mooney, take 'er easy mate. We didn't say anything."

"Whatever."

"What's bugging you mate?" Peter asked, not taking the hint.

"I don't want to talk about it." Remus said grouchily.

"It's about a girl," Sirius said with a proud look. "What else could it be about. Mooney likes a girl."

Remus slightly blushed and muttered "Do not."

James laughed heartily. "Who is she? Oh it's Marlene Isn't it? I knew there was something about her.."

"It's not Marlene." Remus said confidently.

"Well then. Who could it be?" Sirius asked. He was genuinely curious.

"It's not Bella is it?" Peter asked unaware of the tensing Sirius beside him.

"Not Bella, no."

James got a look of horror on his face, "It can't be Lily…"

AN: Well here's chapter 2. Hope you enjoy. Please read and review. Thanks to all of oyu who reviewed the first chapter, much appriciated:)

Kayla


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